Luna and the CrumpleHorned Snorkack
by LillaQ
Summary: The forbidden forest bears many secrets, once you enter you never know what to meet...may be unicorns, trolls and even CrumpleHorned Snorkacks...


**Luna and the Crumple-Horned Snorkack**

Hello. My name is Luna Lovegood and last night I saw a Crumple-Horned Snorkack!

It's a very fascinating creature, looking almost like a small pig, with horns that curls in spirals. And they're only supposed to live in Sweden. I know that because my father and I are planning a trip there next summer to look for them.

But yesterday I saw one right here outside Hogwarts! Let me tell you what happened.

It was an ordinary Tuesday, a perfect day, well...if you don't count Professor Trelawney. She seemed unusually fuzzy brained, and everyone knows what that means. Wrackspurts! I bet it was a whole swarm, because the Professor acted like it was a heavy infestation. I know Ginny said that she smelled a lot like sherry, but that just proves it. When they are hatching they emit a smell like stale cooking sherry. Father had an article about it in the Quibbler two years ago, if anyone would like to read more about it. Or if they suspect someone in their vicinity is infected, of course.

Anyway, I was sure that Professor Trelawney was infested by the Wrackspurts, so I did the only thing possible. I set her shawl on fire, because as you all know, Wrackspurts fear fire most of all. Apparently Professor Trelawney was unaware of this – I really should send her that article – because she got very angry and took twenty points from Ravenclaw and gave me a detention.

When I turned up in Professor Trelawney's office that night, she told me that she had a nasty headache, and that I was to have my detention with Professor Snape instead, and that he awaited me in the Entrance Hall.

I was not the only one waiting for the Professor there, Colin Creevey and Romilda Vane had detention as well.

As soon as Professor Snape arrived, he opened the doors and and told us to follow him outside.

There he gave us a small basket each, and cotton gloves. He told us that were looking for moondaisys, and that we had to use the gloves when picking the flowers since they are very sensitive for human touch.

Moondaisy is a small flower that blossoms in moonlight, and it is not very common in non-magical places. But the Forbidden Forest is very magical, and therefore the flower grows there in large numbers. The moondaisy is used in healing potions, and since it's more effective when fresh it is best to collect it when needed instead of storing them. The four of us headed out in the night.

Professor Snape made it very clear that we were not to wander off but to keep in his sight at all time.

We walked into the forest, following a winding path for nearly half an hour. Then suddenly we were stopped by the Professor. He gestured us to be quiet, and we stood there listening for what felt like ages.

Then we heard a clopping sound, and before our eyes an unicorn came out of the woods. It was a mare, and beside her walked a small foal. The moon glimmered in the coats, the mares silver white, and the foals golden. They stood there looking at us for a while before heading back into the forest, and when passing us the foal came up to me and gave me a little puff in the stomach. I couldn't help but laugh, and at the sound the foal quickly scampered back to it's mother.

It was so very beautiful, but as soon as they were gone Professor Snape told us to move on and we continued our way.

We passed a small stream, and then came to a glade in the forest. The ground was covered in small purple blossoms and the air was filled with a wonderful smell.

The Professor proceeded to show us how to harvest the moondaisys without damaging them. The trick is to not touch the stalk, just take a gentle grip around the flower and twist anticlockwise.

We all got down to work, even Professor Snape, but even though our baskets were small we made slow progress since the flowers were so tiny.

I had only filled half of my basket when my back started to ache, and I had to stretch it for a while.

It was then I noticed the strange light. At first I thought it was a Clabbert because the light looked red, but then I saw it was steady and not flashing. I looked around to see if any of the others had noticed it, but they were all concentrated on picking flowers. I hesitated for a while, trying to decide whether I should alert Professor Snape or if it would be better to ignore it, but I never had to decide what to do, because at that moment the Professor looked up and saw the light for himself.

He gave me a hard look, and told us all to stay right there and do nothing until he returned. Soundlessly he walked towards the red light, wand in hand and looking very fierce.

I think that Professor Snape can be dangerous, but that he really is a good man.

Colin, Romilda and I stood there waiting for a long while, but nothing happened. All we could see was that red light, but not a sign of the Professor. Then we heard something. It was a growling sound, and it came from the same place as the red light. We looked at each other and wondered what to do. Romilda thought that we should go and see if the Professor needed our help and Colin agreed. I said that Professor Snape had told us to stay there and wait for him, and that I was sure that he could handle most things in this wood. But they both said that this could very well be one of the things he couldn't handle, and that we should go and see for our selves. So we went the same way the Professor had, carefully holding our wands at ready.

It was very dark under the trees, and I lighted my wand with a silent Lumos, Colin and Romilda did the same. The only sounds we could hear was our own breathing and the rustling of leaves above our heads as we walked towards the light. The growling had stopped, but we were still very much on our toes, ready for anything. At least that was what we thought.

When we came closer to were we thought the red light should be, the first thing we saw was Professor Snape dangling upside down from a tree. He looked unconscious, and blood trickled down his chin. We couldn't see what had done this to him, but we didn't have to look around for long. Colin and I tried to get the Professor down from the tree while Romilda stood guard. No more had Professor Snape hit the ground before we got our questions answered.

A huge troll came out of the shadows, growling and snarling at us. In his left hand he had a club, and he started to wave it around as he came closer. We were really scared now, if not even Professor Snape could handle a troll what would three students do?

It was then I saw the red light again, and I quickly put a mobilicorpus on the Professor and started to run towards it hoping it was someone who could help us.

Colin and Romilda came after us, all the while trying to hit it with a Full Body-Bind Curse. The curse mostly bounced off the trolls hard skin, but it did slow it down a little. It was then we saw the source of the red light, it came from a small cave just in front of us.

The troll slowed down completely when we reached the cave, but we had no time to wonder about why, instead we rushed inside it in hope to escape.

Well inside we sank down to the floor to catch our breath, and take a look around. The red light came from an enormous flower that were growing from the cave ceiling. It was in full blossom and none of had ever seen anything like it before.

We looked outside to see if the troll was still around, and saw it crouching on the ground. It looked intent on waiting until we came out, so I started to take care of the Professor instead. It was a good thing that my father had printed that article of first aid last month, because I could both heal the wound in his head and ease the concussion. It took only a few minutes before he was awake again, and even though he looked furious he said nothing about our presence. Instead he took one look at the glowing blossom in the cave, and another at the troll outside.

He then told me to Accio his wand, and said that we had to get out as soon as possible. When Colin asked him why, he told us that the flower was a very rare kind of lily that shoots out it's pods by exploding. When it started to glow it was a sign that it was about to explode very soon.

The fresh pods were very valuable and could be used in the most effective universal antidote if combined with sneezewort. Apparently the troll had hit him from behind when he was about to enter the cave.

With those words he walked up to the flower and carefully picked out a few of the black pods before he turned and came back to me to collect his wand.

He then shot a silent curse that I didn't recognise at he troll, but it was very effective because the creature just stopped moving and sat like that even when we all walked just by it.

It was very late when we reached the glade again, and Professor Snape told us that the flowers we had already collected would have to do. It was then I saw it. The Crumple-Horned Snorkack.

It stood in the shadow of a large tree, looking at us with it's beady eyes. I could clearly see the spiral horns, and it was so beautiful!

I pointed it out to the others and they were just as surprised as me, but when Colin reached for his camera it turned and run away.

None of the others had got a close enough look at the Snorkack to be sure what it was, but I told them that I was positive it was a Crumple-Horned Snorkack. No one said much on the way back home to Hogwarts, but when we reached the front doors I asked if Professor Snape would be prepared to give an interwiew with the Quibbler since I was sure that my father would publice an article about this as soon as he got word about the sighting.

But the Professor told me to better keep this Horkack business quiet. I wasn't surprised by that, because I understood perfectly what he meant. If word came out that a Crumple-Horned Snorkack had been sighted around Hogwarts, the Forbidden Forest would be swamped with tourists and I'm sure that would irritate Professor Snape to no end.


End file.
